Cafe Einstein: LPTP Triskaidekaphenia

Phil
Phil
Joined: 8 Jun 14
Posts: 611
Credit: 228868133
RAC: 31538

I once wrote a program as a

I once wrote a program as a joke that looked and even sounded (remember the days of listening to your modem dial in and handshake to hook up?) like it was accessing the FBI mainframe. It had a search page where you typed in your name, or someone else's, and it would "search" for history on that name.

It didn't matter what name you put in, it would come up with some sort of bogus criminal history or even say you were on the FBI most wanted list for some evil transgressions against society.

Those friends of mine in the know could even bring me pictures to scan and insert into the "record" for added realism. More than one of my buddies slept on the couch per the angry wife's demands when shown she was wanted for bank robbery and then let in on the joke.

Looking back I probably got all the anger I deserved, but jeez, it sure was fun. Wouldn't do it these days, though.

Phil

I thought I was wrong once, but I was mistaken.

Aurel
Aurel
Joined: 21 Sep 12
Posts: 29
Credit: 2502988
RAC: 0

New Year challenge for

New Year challenge for science fans: https://www.facebook.com/de.sy.923/posts/507044296104410

Tell me the name from the genome and will get an gift from Germany.
Be fast, its limited: 02.01.2015 12:00 MESZ

Newest post here...i´m winning, maybe.

Mike Hewson
Mike Hewson
Moderator
Joined: 1 Dec 05
Posts: 6591
Credit: 319576782
RAC: 425269

@Aurel : It's Ebola - one of

@Aurel : It's Ebola - one of the variants at least.

As for my Commodore 64 : I don't have it anymore. Alas. I do have two books on it though :

and some spec diagrams :

plus who can forget this classic nerd's mag ( 1986 edition here ) :

@Phil : "Looking back I probably got all the anger I deserved, but jeez, it sure was fun. Wouldn't do it these days, though." ...... takes longer to run the hundred now, eh ? :-)

Cheers, Mike.

I have made this letter longer than usual because I lack the time to make it shorter ...

... and my other CPU is a Ryzen 5950X :-) Blaise Pascal

David S
David S
Joined: 6 Dec 05
Posts: 2473
Credit: 22936222
RAC: 0

TheSonlytlanguageaIrever

TheSonlytlanguageaIrever learnedTtorprogrameinkwas Applesauce BASIC. I did get pretty good at DOS commands on my first Radio Shack, though.

I see nobody found the hidden clue in my last post.

David

Miserable old git
Patiently waiting for the asteroid with my name on it.

David S
David S
Joined: 6 Dec 05
Posts: 2473
Credit: 22936222
RAC: 0

When I was in high school

When I was in high school (and had no regard for software copyrights), there was a "game" going around on 5.25" floppies called Abuse. It was just a text autoresponder. You would type in something and it would respond with an insult. It could even fool you into thinking you had exited, until you tried to do something like "list". Then it would start with the insults again. Eventually, I got bored and actually got into its code, and learned a few things from it.

David

Miserable old git
Patiently waiting for the asteroid with my name on it.

uli
uli
Joined: 6 Jul 11
Posts: 50
Credit: 3135506
RAC: 0

Not sure how I managed it,

Not sure how I managed it, but I got an A in Pascal. The B in Assembly surprised me tho. Yes I am ancient.

Pluto will always be a Planet to me.

Chris S
Chris S
Joined: 27 Aug 05
Posts: 2469
Credit: 19550265
RAC: 0

I learnt to program on GW

I learnt to program on GW Basic, then transferred to BBC basic, then did Pascal with the OU and passed that module with credit. Never really liked Assembler or machinecode, and poking this and peeking that. Still have a commodore 64, Vic 20, BBC B, Compaq twin 5-1/4 floppy "portable" size of a sewing m/c, and an Intertec Superbrain running on CP/M which a Paris museum wants, but wont pay the shipping. And a couple of 486 laptops somewhere.

Waiting for Godot & salvation :-)

Why do doctors have to practice?
You'd think they'd have got it right by now

Bill592
Bill592
Joined: 25 Feb 05
Posts: 786
Credit: 70825065
RAC: 0

RE: I learnt to program on

Quote:

I learnt to program on GW Basic, then transferred to BBC basic, then did Pascal with the OU and passed that module with credit. Never really liked Assembler or machinecode, and poking this and peeking that. Still have a commodore 64, Vic 20, BBC B, Compaq twin 5-1/4 floppy "portable" size of a sewing m/c, and an Intertec Superbrain running on CP/M which a Paris museum wants, but wont pay the shipping. And a couple of 486 laptops somewhere.

Howdy Chris !
Get them 'crunching' !... I'm sure Bernd or Oliver could
come up with a Commodore 64 app pretty quick : )

Bill

edit - that is a nice computing collection you have there !

Aurel
Aurel
Joined: 21 Sep 12
Posts: 29
Credit: 2502988
RAC: 0

@Mike Wow, thats right!

@Mike

Wow, thats right! (Ident is 97%)
It´s not the 2014 genome, it is the genome from 1976, Zaire. GenBank number AF086833.2
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/nuccore/AF086833.2

Please send me your address via PM, you will get an small gift (from Germany...;))

MAGIC Quantum Mechanic
MAGIC Quantum M...
Joined: 18 Jan 05
Posts: 1891
Credit: 1414834444
RAC: 1166693

Mike, is it nerds or geeks?

Mike, is it nerds or geeks? or both?

I didn't want a computer until Al Gore invented the internet

But I was an electronics.....um.....geek most of my life

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